How to Construct a Stoma That Is Easy to Handle for Patients and Caregivers? Trouble Shooting

Abstract

In practice, there is often no such thing as an “easy stoma to handle.” This chapter deals with practical issues not regularly mentioned in publications. A perfect stoma for the surgeon might mean disaster in a patient that does not accept having to live with a stoma. A motivated patient, on the other hand, might find practical solutions with caregivers with suboptimal stomas. Practical considerations mentioned involving surgery are empirical from personal (PR) surgical experience mainly in the field of urology of 35 years. Other chapters in this book deal with theoretical and other practical aspects superbly, backed by excellent references; that is why, no further references are added. Tips and tricks included stem from good clinical practice, on the one hand, and are otherwise from surgical principles that have worked for me (PR), on the other. When doing challenging operations, as stoma surgery often is, every surgeon should use techniques that work in their hands. This chapter does not deliver recipes but rather offers food-for-thought finding better solutions in stoma surgery. Headings provided indicate special issues and considerations. Emphasis is placed on surgical aspects in real cases about issues less presented in the literature, and by no means exhaustive.